At the same time, they should be working against the credentialism and occupational licensing regimes that have turned colleges into gatekeepers to most of the good jobs. If you’re worried that teachers trained in progressive ideology are bringing that ideology into their classrooms, the solution isn’t to try to control what they say — a Herculean task that would be tied up in court for decades. Instead, offer school vouchers for parents who don’t like what their schools are teaching — and de-emphasize education-school credentials for teachers in favor of subject-matter exams.

More broadly, conservatives should be looking to eliminate many degree and licensing requirements. These requirements are gifts to universities, but they are also barriers to mobility for people who don’t want, or aren’t able, to spend years sitting in a classroom. And as educational polarization has increased, those workers increasingly vote Republican.

Unless your professional mistakes could cause severe injury or financial ruin, you shouldn’t need a license to work, and unless your government job is a highly technical specialty, it shouldn’t require a college diploma or advanced degree. Larry Hogan, Maryland’s Republican governor, has already overseen an initiative to strip the degree requirements from hundreds of state government jobs. Trump signed an executive order to similar effect. But strategic-minded Republicans would turn these initiatives into the legislative centerpiece of a broader opportunity agenda, aimed at reducing the growing gaps between those with a college diploma and those without. And they would think hard about everything they need to make that agenda a reality.